Tobacco remains one of the leading causes of preventable deaths globally. Here in the Philippines, tobacco kills around 100,000 people each year – more than 10 every hour.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has long worked with the Government of the Philippines – through its Department of Health and other relevant agencies – to advance evidence-based public health policies that protect Filipinos from the harms of tobacco and related products.
WHO’s support to countries is guided by the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC), a landmark international treaty negotiated and adopted by Member States, including the Philippines. A total of 183 Parties have joined the Convention, which entered into force in 2005. The WHO FCTC is one of the most widely and rapidly embraced United Nations treaties in history.
WHO’s MPOWER package – a set of six cost-effective, evidence-based tobacco control measures – is implemented by governments, tailored to national contexts, building on the core demand reduction measures in the WHO FCTC. These measures – Monitor, Protect, Offer, Warn, Enforce, and Raise taxes – have saved millions of lives by helping to reduce tobacco use worldwide.
WHO’s governance and funding mechanisms are rooted in transparency, accountability, and multilateral decision-making.
The WHO FCTC Secretariat provides technical guidance to Parties, but policy decisions are made by governments themselves. The work of the WHO FCTC Secretariat is funded entirely by governments that are Parties to the Convention. The next meeting of the treaty’s governing body, the Conference of the Parties (COP), will be held 17-22 November 2025. On 22 October, the WHO FCTC Secretariat issued a statement alerting governments and the public to intensified attempts by the tobacco industry to interfere with the COP negotiations, and called on Parties to stay vigilant.
The WHO Foundation is an independent grant-making entity that supports WHO in addressing global health challenges through funding and partnerships.
WHO remains committed to working closely with the Government of the Philippines, civil society, and partners to reduce tobacco use, protect children and youth from addiction, and advance implementation of public health policies that are grounded in science and the WHO FCTC. This includes support to safeguard health policy from commercial and vested interests, in line with Article 5.3 of the WHO FCTC.
WHO stands with the Philippines and all Member States in their ongoing efforts to reduce the burden of tobacco-related diseases and save lives.